Two-time European Figure Skating Championships medallist Susanna Pöykiö is quitting the sport. Pöykiö announced her widely-anticipated decision on Wednesday.
“The last six years of my career as a competing athlete I have battled with a persistent lower back disk problem and I consider that to be the primary reason for my retiring from top level sports”, Pöykiö writes in her statement.
Pöykiö also wants to concentrate on her studies.
“I also recognise that competitive sports cannot continue forever under any circumstances and I therefore want to take the responsibility for my future on the education side as well. My first goal is to complete my artisan degree in textiles and clothing design in the course of the summer. In the autumn I will commence my Finnish language studies at the University of Oulu's Faculty of Humanities.”
The careerhighlights of Pöykiö, who started ice skating at the age of three, include a European Figure Skating Championships silver medal from 2005 and a bronze medal from the games hosted in Helsinki in 2009.
In addition, Pöykiö won eight Finnish Championship titles.
On the international level, Pöykiö made Finnish sporting history in 2001 by winning the bronze medal in the World Junior Championships.
At the 2005 Torino European Championships, Pöykiö then became the first Finnish female figure-skater to win an individual medal at the adult level in top international competition.
In the World Championships Pöykiö finished eighth twice (2005, 2007).
At the 2006 Torino Olympic Games she was 13th in the final standings.
After a disappointing showing in this year's European Championships, where she eventually withdrew through injury, Pöykiö did not make it to Vancouver.
Finland was represented at the Olympics by the 2009 European Champion Laura Lepistö (6th) and Kiira Korpi (11th).
